Righteous Among the Neighbors is a project of the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh that honors non-Jewish Pittsburghers who support the Jewish community and take action to uproot antisemitism. In partnership with the LIGHT Education Initiative and Mt. Lebanon High School, student journalists interview honorees and write profiles about their efforts.
Article by Alyson Lushko
When Pennsylvania’s 2014 Act 70 encouraged schools to teach about the Holocaust, Joe Harmon saw an opportunity rather than an excuse to wait. The Redbank Valley High School educator took the initiative to pitch and advocate for a Holocaust studies elective at his school, going beyond the state’s encouragement to create something he felt was essential for his students.
Harmon has been named as Righteous Among the Neighbors for his support of the Jewish community throughout the years.
His hard work has not gone unnoticed. Emily Loeb works at the Holocaust Center of Pittsburgh and nominated Harmon for the recognition. She has gotten to know him because he is a veteran educator in the area and was the Holocaust Center’s Educator of the Year in 2018-2019.
Loeb praised his innovative approach, noting that Harmon not only teaches the historical facts of the Holocaust but also emphasizes Jewish life and culture, helping students connect personally to the stories of those affected.
“He goes above and beyond by having his students actually meet Holocaust survivors when possible,” Loeb said. “So this fall, he brought 50 students to the Holocaust Center to not only meet a survivor, but to connect what he’s teaching in the classroom to a real person.”
Harmon’s own journey with Holocaust education began in college. Returning to school as a 29-year-old paramedic, he enrolled in a summer course on Nazism, Hitler and the Holocaust.
“The professor was just fantastic and really spurred my interest in the topic,” Harmon said. “Just the way he could describe what happened made me really care about the events and the people that were lost.”
His dedication also includes firsthand experience abroad. A trip to Poland, visiting sites such as Auschwitz, Treblinka, and the Warsaw and Lodz Ghettos, left a lasting impression. Harmon recounted standing over a mass grave of 45 children, ages 4 to 17, executed solely for being Jewish.
“It wasn’t just 6 million,” he said. “There were names. There were people. Children. So many of them. That was the trip that really changed things for me.”
Harmon’s work is not limited to history lessons, but is connected to present-day awareness of antisemitism. Recently, a student came to him upset after discovering a swastika left in a student from a different school’s mailbox.
“I want you to get upset by this,” Harmon told her, reinforcing that the lessons of the Holocaust carry importance in recognizing injustice today.
For Harmon, being recognized as Righteous Among the Neighbors is particularly meaningful.
“It’s [for] my caring for the Jewish community and the subject matter in history,” he said. “Somebody recognized that. I think that’s just so cool.”
Through decades of teaching, hundreds of students have gained not just knowledge of history, but empathy, understanding and a commitment to combating antisemitism.
“When he was taught history, he was taught a little bit about the Holocaust, but not really a true deep dive into it,” Loeb said. “So the fact that he felt like he saw something that was lacking and took the initiative to make it happen is incredible.”
By building connections between his students and the Jewish community, both locally and internationally, Harmon demonstrates the powerful role allies can play in fighting hate and preserving the memory of those lost.
“Just because you [believe in another religion] doesn’t mean you can’t recognize the culture of other cultures,” Harmon said. “I’ve made brisket and tried to make challah bread and latkes. To me, Jewish culture is a big part of me now.”